Artist Spotlight: Mihai Ciupe

Dracula set design created by Mihai Ciupe

Mihai Ciupe has been one of the Hippodrome’s resident scenic designers for the past five years while also acting as Associate Professor at the University of Florida’s School of  Theatre and Dance. Mihai has always considered himself to be a part of a “theatre family.”  His father was a scenic designer, and from a very early age, he was exposed to the limitless possibilities of the stage.

These days, Mihai is busy working on the set for the Hipp’s upcoming production of Dracula.  This is perhaps a doubly appropriate assignment, since he is also a Transylvanian native.

The Journey from Romania to Gainesville

Mihai Ciupe was born in Cluj, Romania, where his father worked and where he developed an interest in following in his father’s footsteps.  He received his BA at the Ion Andreescu Academy of Visual Arts and went on to become resident scenographer for the National Theatre of Cluj-Napoca, during which time he collaborated with some of Romania’s most acclaimed directors.  Touring with his productions, he absorbed the theatre of England, Scotland, Hungary, France, and Yugoslavia.  In 1996, he came to the US to pursue his MFA degree in costume and set design at Carnegie Mellon.  Prior to accepting positions at UF and the Hipp, he worked at the Cape Playhouse in Cape Cod and the Quantum Theatre in Pittsburg.

Romania and the “Dracula” Phenomenon

Mihai points out that the myth of “Dracula” is more an invention of Western popular culture than the product of Romania’s tempestuous history.  As for Vlad the Impaler (Bram Stoker’s inspiration for the Count), the Romanian people regard him more as a fact than a curiosity.  They acknowledge his “unusual thirst for blood” in battling the Turks and maintaining order, but as Mihai points out, the Romania of today would be very different had he not existed.  He also recalls little if any mention of “vampire legends” back home, and he admits it is annoying that people carry such vast misconceptions of his homeland out of a kind of “thirst for thrills and spectacle.”

The Real Romania

Mihai Cuipe explains that Romania is a very exotic and beautiful place that was for years marked by wild frontiers.  This coupled with its often-violent history may account for the stigma it carries in the West. On the other hand, it is a land that has absorbed much of the cultures that forced their way in.  Romania repelled Ottoman influences, Mihai states, but it embraced the Romans, Germans, Austro-Hungarians, Poles, and Russians.

Were he to realign Western perceptions of Romania, he would point to its unique architectural and artistic achievements, such as beautiful medieval castles that stand to this day.  Also, Moldavian monasteries have the unusual feature of colorful frescoes on their outer walls that have survived the elements over the centuries.  The Hungarians, Mihai points out, would not allow churches in Romania to be built of stone, so to this day, one can find traditionally constructed churches composed entirely of elegant wood.

According to Mihai, all of these unique and beautiful attributes of his homeland go by unnoticed by America and Western Europe because it’s “just good marketing” to foster the idea of the Carpathian region as a dark and foreboding place.

Designing Dracula

Mihai Ciupe’s job on this production is “to imagine and create the visual environment for a play,” a task which involves many considerations, from making sure he’s always on the same page as the costume and lighting designers to troubleshooting issues like making sure the blood isn’t tracked on the Hipp’s new carpeting.

This adaptation of Dracula never sets foot in Romania but remains in the West to tell the story.  Therefore, the initial idea behind the design, he says, is that it is set in a world where the undead are trying to break through the very floor like roots.

Mihai, after reading the text and brainstorming with the other designers and director Lauren Caldwell, determined that this was a play about atmosphere and thrills, not depth and introspection.  This Dracula needs to be “scary, fantastical, and dreamlike” with “a rich-looking interior, in contrast with what’s coming into it.”  This contrast between the play’s setting and the progression of its action is fundamental to Mihai Ciupe’s philosophy of design.

“A set should never tell you the whole story,” he asserts. “It should be mysterious, and give you the feeling of the world you’re about to enter.”